ITV Racing Tips for Thursday 12th May from York and Salisbury

Day 2 of the York Dante Festival takes place on Thursday 12th May at York and ITV Racing are covering five races, including the big race of the week.
We should get more Epsom Derby clues from the Dante and there is a new bookies to get a free bet from called Luckland, who will give you a £10 free bet when you sign-up and bet £15 on any York race this week.
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1:50 York
The first race on Day 2 of the York Dante Meeting is a trappy 5f sprint handicap.
The selection here is COPPER KNIGHT (13/2). Of course, he has a fantastic record here at York winning 5 of his 14 starts and very rarely missing the frame. He was a big drifter on his seasonal reappearance at Musselburgh where he finished mid-division beaten just over 4l. That will have put him spot on for this and from a lovely draw in stall 7, he can bowl along and go close.
2:05 Salisbury
We head over to Salisbury for one race and six runners are set to go to post for this 1m2f handicap.
I like VIADELAMORE here for the John Ferguson stable. I was taken by her seasonal debut victory at Redcar last month where she settled well off the pace before coming with a late run to win easily enough at the line. Only up 5lb for that victory, I think she can continue on the upward curve given the fact this is only her fifth career start to date.
2:25 York
The 2:25 from York is the Middleton Fillies Stakes, a Group 2 contest over an extended 1m2f trip. A short but select field head to post.
The one for me is VILLE DE GRACE (3/1) for the Stoute team. She was a gutsy second first time up this season in the Group 2 Dahlia Stakes when going down a nose to Dreamloper. That’s a race that I expect will work out well and hopefully compensation awaits here. This extra furlong is a positive in my eyes and he may have too much speed for the Irish challengers if the ground doesn’t get too soft from Wednesday’s rain.
3:00 York
The 3:00 race is another tricky handicap for punters to tackle, this time the Hambleton Handicap over 7f.
I like ISLA KAI (5/1) here for the Nigel Tinkler yard. He completed a hat-trick last season before finishing a good second on his final start as a 3 year-old here at York in a decent handicap. He has shown he’s progressed well over the winter when finishing fourth in the Sprint Cuo behind potential Group level horses. He’ll be well suited by this track and trip and with fitness on his side, it’ll take a good one to pass him in my book.
3:35 York
The feature race of the week comes up at 3.35, the Dubai Dante Stakes, a Group over 1m2f which will provide the final clues for the Epsom Derby.
It’s EL BODEGON (10/3) NB for me here for the John Ferguson team again. The selection would be favourite if trained by a more powerful yard I’m sure. He was a great 2 year-old which included a victory over current Derby favourite Stone Age on his final start last season. He won easily that day and has proved to a reliable sort who can handle all conditions. If there is no pace on, he won’t mind going from the front either.
4:10 York
The finale on ITV comes up at 4:10 and it is a listed race over 5f.
My selection here is KING OF BAVARIA (15/8) NAP. The Aiden O’Brien team can’t do much wrong on either side of the shores at the moment and the selection could prove much better than this lot. The son of No Nay Never won both career starts as a 2 year-old before making a really encouraging seasonal reappearance at Naas last month. He finished fourth that day doing all his best work at the finish despite running green. He’ll have learn a lot from that and I expect he’ll get a lovely toe into the race before displaying a potent kick to get up in the final furlong.
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